We've been hearing a lot about how sustainability goals and new renewable energy infrastructure is likely to get sidetracked because of today's economic turmoil. Of course, pretty much any new capital-intensive project these days is running into financing issues. This is not something exclusive to the renewable energy industry.
Regardless, it was reassuring to recently read about Wells Fargo's environmental financing exceeding $3 billion. Not bad, considering the bank's goal was to provide only $1 billion in commitments to Earth-friendly projects.
Some of these projects include…
More than $700 million to support solar and wind energy projects across the country.
About $500 million to support business customers who focused their operations on renewable energy, efficiency, resource management, and sustainable agriculture and forestry.
About $50 million for nonprofits that have improved the environment in low-to moderate-income communities.
And my favorite…more than $2 billion toward green building projects that have met LEED certification standards.
Five years ago, the thought of a bank ponying up $3 billion worth of environmental financing would've been met with a lot of skepticism. But not today. The fact is, investing in green building and renewable energy is not just about drumming about some good PR. It's about the bottom line. These projects are extremely profitable.
While the real estate market flounders along, green buildings thrive. In fact, a recent study by CoStar Group (a commercial real estate information and research company), found that LEED or Energy Star certified buildings have higher occupancy rates than their non-green competitors, and rent for more per square foot.
And while the upfront capital costs on solar, wind, and geothermal projects tend to be quite high – they incur little or no fuel costs once they become operational. Though some large, utility scale projects require natural gas backup systems, the sun, the wind, and the geothermal resources beneath our feet are free.
Have a great holiday!
